Should we get annual leave to care for our pets?

Dubbed 'paw-ternity' or 'fur-ternity' leave, there's a growing movement for pet parents to be able to take paid leave to care for their furry children.

Places including the United States have already taken it on board, with some companies in Australia beginning to consider it too. After all, in some families, pets are just as important as children.

According to research from Finder.com.au, 10 per cent of pet owners admit to taking leave to look after their pets. Often, this would be their own annual leave, resulting in an out-of-pocket expense.

Celebrity vet Dr Katrina Warren and employment expert Bessie Hassan spoke to the TODAY show about why employees should have a right to designated pet leave and how we can move further towards it.

Carers leave

Just like you wouldn't leave your sick three-year-old at home to fend for themselves, pets deserve love and attention when they're unwell too. Especially if they're puppies or they've been introduced to a new environment.

"We know that first week or two weeks of how you integrate that puppy into your life is going to actually impact how it develops through its life," Dr Katrina Warren tells host Georgie Garnder.

(iStock)

This is especially important for rescue pets, who can take a little bit longer to adapt to their new surroundings. "If you've adopted a pet that's a little bit anxious and you bring it into your house and just leave it there cause you're going to work – a) you're going to stress at work and b) the animal's going to stress."

Then, of course, there are circumstances where a pet falls ill or passes away. Dr Warren says she lost a cat recently, and the loss impacted her entire family. "My daughter didn't go to school for three days, she was so upset. I needed to be there for her."

"Also," Dr Warren adds, "We forget there's a process involved when we lose a pet as well, where we have to organise the cremation and his ashes. You want to be there and you need that time off."

"If employees are demanding this flexibility and this as an option, it leads to a productive workforce and there are winners all round," Hassan says.

However, we can't hold our breath just yet. "I don't know that it's something that will come into effect immediately but I do know workplaces are changing and adapting and becoming a lot more flexible," she added. "Whether or not it becomes a policy remains to be seen but we are seeing workplaces embracing pet-friendly environments more and more."

As viewer Tiffany Osbourne said when she wrote into TODAY, "Fur babies are just as important as human babies."